Special Announcement Due to the ‘Red Flag’ conditions that we are experiencing across western Montana, the Moose Meadows fire has grown substantially in a northeasterly direction from Whetstone Lake. The fire’s growth towards the Middle Fork Road and Kaiser Lake has prompted the sheriff’s office to issue an evacuation of the residents on the Middle Fork Road south of the junction of Road 5130. The evacuation proceeded in an orderly fashion, and was completed by Sunday afternoon. A shelter for displaced people has been set up at the Philipsburg High School. For more information on emergency services please call the Department of Emergency Services at 406-560-1462.

Fire Information: 406-859-6005July 28, 2013 9:00 pm Office hours: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.Incident: Wildland fire, lightning-caused, reported on July 25, 2013Location: 18 miles southeast of Philipsburg, MT and 15 miles west of Georgetown, MTJurisdiction: Beaverhead Deerlodge National ForestCooperating Agencies: Other cooperating entities include the volunteer fire department from Philipsburg, Montana DNRC and the Granite County Sheriff and DES.Incident Commander: Shawn Pearson, Northern Rockies Type II Incident Management Team (IMT). Current Size: 2000 acres Containment: 0%Strategy: Full Suppression Structures Threatened: 30 Structures Lost: 0 Structure Protection: ImplementedToday’s Activity: A cold front that moved through the area resulted in a spot fire that grew to several hundred acres east of the main fire. The location and potential spread of this spot fire prompted the Sheriff to issue the evacuation order for the area south of the junction of Forest Service Road 5130 and the Middle Fork Road. At noon today, winds from the southwest caused significant fire growth along Lone Pine Ridge and towards Senate Creek. As conditons allowed, crews continued handline construction on the northwest and southwest flanks of the fire. Aircraft provided critical support for suppresion efforts with both water and retardent drops. The structure protection group initiated structure protection measures in the affected communities. An evacuation shelter has been established at Phillipsburg High School for displaced residents.Current Resources:The number of firefighters on the incident is 419. Resources assigned include eight crews, five helicopters, nine engines, three water tenders, and support personnel.Planned Actions: Crews will strengthen the fireline on the northwest and southwest flanks of the main fire. As conditions allow, heavy equipment will improve access to the southeastern section of the fire to faciliate safe access for the crews. The structure protection group will continue their efforts. The weather forecast for tomorrow calls for variable winds that could cause increased fire growth. Special Messages/Closures: Evacuations are in place for some residents. The Granite County Sheriff’s Office is in charge of all evacuations. People who are displaced may call the Department of Emergency Services at (406-560-1462). The fire area is closed to hiking and camping per Forest order No. 2013-D8-027. The following trails are closed: 8109, 8020, 8162, 8019 and 8161.

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The Salmon River Mountain Press shares news from federal and state natural resource agencies, environmental, conservation and recreation groups in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The blog delivers the content one news story at a time.